Value scales. Working from still life: two, three, and five value systems. Initial exploration in vine charcoal of white still life objects, followed by hatching, graphite and wash. How value describes structure, weight, light and space. Chiaroscuro. The subjective use of value. The mechanics of observing value…squinting. The interlock of value, tonal shapes, distinct and blended. Artists: Goya, Thiebaud, Morandi, Cuevas, Leslie, Courbet, Seurat, Chagoya, Millet,Celmins.

Sketchbook DUE every Tueday.

Complete five [5] self-portraits. Explore current in class methods. Use dramatic lighting.
DATE every sketch. Below date, list time spent on sketch

Select one [1] artist from section schedule. Choose based on what interests or provokes you (love or hate), printout a sample work and paste into sketchbook. Below or on next page, list title, artist, date and write a paragraph explaining your interest in this artist and specifically this artwork.

Additional sketches may be assigned. See website each Friday to review requirements.

ART 1303. Drawing I: Introduction (3). Investigation of a variety of media, techniques, and subjects. Students develop perceptual, descriptive, and verbal skills with consideration of drawing as a conceptual process as well as an end in itself. Outside assignments. AP or portfolio waiver possible. Fulfills core Visual and Performing Arts requirement.

Course Requirements

Six hours in class required studio participation each week. At least three hours of productive work outside of class each week is required to meet standards required by NASAD (9 hours total per week).

Course Purpose

This drawing course is designed to facilitate your explorations as maker, as thinker. You will acquire essential skills in perceptual drawing. It serves as a requirement for majoring in Art History, Communication Design, Visual Studies and Studio Art. You will develop the ability to observe, record, and understand the concrete world around them. You will also utilize drawing as a tool for visual thinking, and as one of the most direct forms of self-expression. Good craft and good presentation of work are essential. Students will be prepared for future efforts in drawing problem-solving and art-making activities.

It is an introduction to drawing materials, theories and practices intended to trigger further explorations on your part. It will provide a working regimen of exercises and critique that incorporate drawing through observational representation of two dimensional space and surface.

Plan to budget a minimum of 3 to 5 hours of outside of class work time weekly.

If you get what you already have, then you gain nothing. Expand your visual vocabulary. EXPERIMENT. PUSH. TRY ANYTHING and EVERYTHING.

Expected Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course students will:

• use visual organizational clues within the subject matter to help organize drawings.
• create balanced compositions with movement, emphasis, contrast and rhythm.
• establish a logical pattern of light and value in drawings.
• create drawings with illusionistic, unified space.
• demonstrate competence in mark making through the use of drawing mediums and materials.
• explore various techniques of drawing.
• expand capacity for divergent artistic behavior by allowing for previously unknown or unexpected stumbles.
• develop the ability to depict shape, mass and space by using line, value, texture and perspective in a variety of methods.
• acquire a working visual vocabulary.
• gain an acquaintance with historical and contemporary drawings and other artists’ work.

Methods for Assessing the Expected Learning Outcomes

Class critiques, in-class exercises, text and sketchbook assignments, teacher observation of students while working, in-class discussions about art and a written exam.

Creativity

Art is about exploration, experimentation, and pushing boundaries. Research, knowledge of content, understanding of the audience, appropriateness of message, clarity of communication drive solutions in terms of the artists vision. Ideas and solutions are achieved through challenging yourself to approach the creative process with an open mind. In doing so you learn more about yourself, the process, and the world around you. Design and art are everywhere. Become more aware of what is around you, and begin to look at it critically, asking—do I like it/dislike it? Why? How did they do that? How might I do it differently?

Methods

This class is for the exploration and experimentation of problems regarding the depiction of 3d space into two dimensions.

In addition to the evaluation of assignments through group discussions, 4 reviews will be held throughout the semester. All work is expected to be completed and ready for the critique presentation. Presentation matters. Many/most of the class projects will require time outside of class to complete. Also, your verbal demonstration of understood concepts during critiques/discussions will be counted towards your grades. Each CRIT/review will be evaluated for:

• Completion of assigned work
• Craftsmanship [including presentation]
• Compositional selection and execution
• Use of current exploratory method
• Individual progress and development
• Drawings will not be accepted late.[They may be submitted early]

35% Sketchbook/Journal

This sketchbook/journal will house a combination of drawings, sketches, observations, ephemera, research and ideas related to the course curriculum. It should always be with you in studio. Bring it with you to studio everyday!

EACH WEEK [date each item + time spent]

Complete five [5] self-portraits. Explore current in class methods. Use dramatic lighting.
DATE every sketch. Below date, list time spent on sketch

Select one [1] artist from section schedule. Choose based on what interests or provokes you (love or hate), printout a sample work and paste into sketchbook. Below or on next page, list title, artist, date and write a paragraph explaining your interest in this artist and specifically this artwork.

Additional sketches will be assigned. See website each Friday to review requirements.

Not having your sketchbook will result in a ZERO that week [makes my life easy].

10% Participation

• Contribution to critiques and discussions
• Increased ability to use the vocabulary acquired through lectures and assigned readings
• Participation in class activities and preparation of required materials in every class project• Not being engaged in any form of distraction
• Not being tardy to class
• Missing a critique will result in 5 points deducted from the portfolio score.
• Late work will not be accepted. Turn it in early if need be.• Each occasion of texting in class will result in a 1-pt. deduction from the final participation score.

5% Test

There will be a written and drawing test at the end of semester that covers concepts and vocabulary discussed in class and from textbook.

Materials (towards bottom))

The work you produce is intimately related to the materials you have available because it is through particular materials that your drawing/thinking processes are formulated. All you need for drawing is an implement that makes marks and a surface or ground upon which to apply it. Aside from the economic factor, the use of found or scrap materials can actually be an asset to your drawing experiences. As of now, begin collecting anything that is capable of making or receiving a mark. You can draw on the clean side of discarded typing paper, gray cardboard and corrugated cardboard, cloth from satin to canvas, glass and plastic…all can be used for drawings. Franz Kline used a telephone directory and deKooning often used newspapers, not because he couldn’t afford better paper, but because he liked the feel of newspaper. Pencils, pens, and charcoal have been used by artists to make marks…but they have also used things such as their fingers, the butt of their hand, feathers and quills, twigs, grease, bones, acids, berry juice, mud, plaster, string, wired, sponges, erasers, breadcrumbs, graphite and metal dust, hair, and fur, to name a few. One of the hallmarks of artists is that they begin to see everything in their environment as having a potential use for either their immediate or some future artistic endeavor. [verbiage borrowed from Carol Zack]

REQUIRED Materials

The following will be available in a kit form at Varsity Bookstore. It is cheapest to buy as a kit (discounted). KIT

Drawing Pad 14×17

Drawing Board 18×24

Yarka Compressed Charcoal – 1 box

Charcoal – Thick (12 pk)

Conte – Sanguine Watteau–2B

Conte – White-HB

Conte – Black-2B

Brush Round #12 – Robert Simmons Series 85

Higgins India Ink

Sketch Mate Set

Drawing Pencil – 4B

Kneaded Eraser – Large

Clic Eraser

Bulldog Clips – Large (2 ea.)

Red Wallet Portfolio 23×31

Chamois

Yellow Frog Tape 1”x 60 yd.

Ruler 24” Aluminum

The following should be purchased individually, separate from the kit.

The School of Art expects regular and punctual attendance and has determined that only three absences are acceptable without penalty for art foundation courses.

Each absence after 3 = -10 from final grade

3 late arrivals or early leaves = 1 absence

NO later work is accepted; if you must be absent, submit early

You are responsible for keeping track of your own absences, late attendances and early departures, and for the make-up of the assignments of any missed excused classes. These three given absences include standard illness and schedule conflicts during the semester. Students may use their limited drops up to the 45th class day of the semester

This is non-negotiable

Example

Final grade 95; missed 3 classes or less final grade stays at 95 A
Final grade 95; missed 5 classes final grade goes to 75 C

Many exhibitions and art lectures in art will be shown at various times and locations during the semester. Students will be able to make up ‘one’ unexcused absence by attending an art lecture or an art exhibition (off-campus) and writing a critical opinion review of this event (1,000 words, type and email to professor). Whether or not receiving extra credit depends on the quality of the essay and of the venues. This is limited to only ‘one’ absence per student. Please speak with the instructor before attempting any extra credit.

Reporting Serious Illness

In case of an illness that will require absence from class for more than one week, the student should notify his or her academic dean. The Dean’s office will inform the student’s instructors through the departmental office. In case of class absences because of a brief illness, the student should inform the instructor directly.

Absence Policy for Religious Holidays
(OP 34.19)

1. “Religious holy day” means a holy day observed by a religion whose places of worship are exempt from property taxation under Texas Tax Code 11.20.

2. A student who intends to observe a religious holy day should make that intention known to the instructor prior to the absence. A student who is absent from classes for the observance of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence.

3. A student who is excused under Section 2 may not be penalized for the absence; however the instructor may respond appropriately if the student fails to complete the assignment satisfactorily.

Visitors in Classroom

Unannounced visitors to the class must present a current, official identification card to be permitted in the classroom. They must not present a disruption to the class by their attendance. If the visitor is not a registered student, it is at the instructor’s discretion whether or not the visitor will be allowed to remain in the classroom.

General Dos and Don’ts

• NO FOOD or DRINK (not even bottles) in room. University Policy.

• Clean-up: Pick up your trash and wipe down drawing board and support ledge with wet paper towel [also recommended: make a folded paper trap for charcoal dust], and return the easel/horse/drawing board to the storage area

• Keep all work.

• Respect and protect your work if you expect anyone else to do so.

• All work that is handed in for grading must have your name and date printed unobtrusively on the back.

• All finished work must be fixed.

• Do not spray fixative in the classroom.

• Only use spray paint in spray booth in courtyard and architecture lab.

• The cost of materials is not an excuse for incomplete assignments.

• I will explain all assignments and due dates in class. Handouts and weekend to do lists will be posted on class website www.drawing.washsam.com

• It is your responsibility to take notes and remember information given.

• Lockers on 2nd floor are available on a first-come-first-served basis. Bring your own lock.

• A visiting artist presentation and a field trip may be arranged.

• Studio is available for you to work in if no other classes are meeting in the space.

SAFETY

Texas Tech University Art Department – Drawing Health and Safety

Primary points of safety when working in the drawing studios

1. AIR QUALITY
Ventilate, don’t inhalate, Use proper ventilation (fresh air into the studio). If you start feeling dizzy, nauseous, “high” or sleepy, leave the studio and get fresh air! DO not use any aerisol sprays inside the studios, hallways, or anywhere in the building. Use one of the spray booths (located in the model lab in the courtyard level of the Architecture building or in the embankment next to the sculpture boneyard) When erasing, do not blow charcoal or pastel dust off the paper, instead tap the drawing on the floor.

3. BACK STRESS.
Drawing while sitting or standing for prolonged periods of time can be stressful on your back. Take opportunities to rest your back and shoulders and carefully stretch your muscles. Lift properly, (with your legs, not your back, keep your back straight, do not bend over to lift), take breaks and stretch your back.

4. EYE STRESS.
Take regular breaks and rest your eyes. Too much focusing up close is very bad on them. Relax and stare at something far away, to rest the eye muscles.

5. HAND STRESS.
Excessive use of hands, especially repetitive stress motions, and excessive prolonged bending of the wrist, can cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Take breaks and gently flex your wrists back and forth to relieve stress on the tendons.

6. EASELS AND BOARDS.
if not used properly, with bolts and wing nuts appropriately tightened, easels can fall over or release the drawing boards, becoming a threat to feet or ankles in the way. Make sure that bolts in your easel are securely tightened.

7. EYE CONTAMINATION.
if you splash a chemical in your eye, immediately go to a sink and start washing it out with cold water. Hold open your eyelid with two fingersand continue washing for 15 minutes. Call 911, but do not stop washing out your eye before the 15 minutes are up (or longer for particularly harsh chemicals)

8. CLOTHES.
always wear closed toe shoes in the studio, and clothing that may be worn in a work environment where charcoal, pastel, and other art materials are likely to get on you.

9. FIRES.Have a large fire extinguisher available, and know how to use it. Store flammable materials, such as turpentine, safely (a fireproof cabinet, such as the one in the painting area is a good idea).DO NOT BE A HERO, DIAL 911!

10. Burns.If you sustain a bad burn, go straight to the emergency room at the Health Sciences Hospital, which is the burn unit, DO NOT USE BURN GEL

11. SEVERE WEATHER.
If threatening weather approaches, it is a good idea to unplug all electrical items incase there is a power surge due to a lightening strike on the power grid. In the event of a tornado, Get out of a mobile home, they are very unsafe, have a place of safety picked out. In the Architecture building, this is the basement. See the Safety Coordinator for more information.

Keep in mind that our environment already contains numerous pollutants, do not increase the stress put on your body with unsafe art practices.

Civility

Students are expected to assist in maintaining a classroom environment which is conducive to learning. In order to assure that all students have an opportunity to gain from time spent in class, unless otherwise approved by the instructor, students are prohibited from using cellular phones or beepers, eating or drinking in class, making offensive remarks, reading newspaper, sleeping or engaging in any other form of distraction. Inappropriate behavior in classroom shall result in, minimally, a request to leave class and the absence policy applies for the missing part of class. This includes Texting on portable devices. On the first occasion, you will get a warning. On each additional occasion, a 1-point deduction will apply to your participation score in addition to being requested to leave class.

Americans with Disabilities Act (OP 34.22)

Any student who, because of a disabling condition, may require some special arrangements in order to meet course requirements should contact the instructor as soon as possible so that the necessary accommodations can be made.

Health and Safety Policy

In an effort to maintain a safe academic and working environment the School of Art will endeavor to comply with the intent of state laws or acts and the University Health and Safety Program.

Academic Honesty (OP 34.12)

The faculty is strongly committed to upholding standards of academic integrity. These standards, at the minimum require that students never present the work of others as their own. (Before a course grade of “F” is given for cheating, contact the Dean of students Office 2-2192 for procedural advice.)